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WWE legend Randy Orton once threatened Stephanie McMahon in the middle of the ring that he would force her to cancel WrestleMania and shut the company down. The threat came in the wake of The Viper's Royal Rumble 2009 victory.
On the road to WWE Royal Rumble in 2009, Orton brutally attacked then-WWE Chairman Vince McMahon. The Viper won the battle royal, thus punching his ticket to the main event of WrestleMania 25. Soon after Orton's victory, he confronted Stephanie McMahon on WWE RAW.
Orton clarified that if Stephanie fired him that night, he would file an injunction, preventing WrestleMania 25 from taking place. He further threatened to shut WWE down as well.
"Actually, Stephanie. it is a threat. I have a legal right to be at WrestleMania. I won the Royal Rumble. If you fire me here tonight, I'll sue you. But not only will I sue you, I will file an injunction so that this year there will be no WrestleMania. I will shut this company up, I will shut it down. And that is not a threat. That, Stephanie McMahon, is a promise. Now, what are you going to do about that?" Orton said.
Stephanie McMahon didn't fire Randy Orton, and he ended up competing at WrestleMania 25
Orton's feud with the McMahon family kept getting more personal as WrestleMania loomed closer. On the road to WrestleMania, Orton attacked McMahons one after the other, and WWE Champion Triple H was hell-bent on exacting revenge for his actions.
At WrestleMania 25, Orton and Triple H met in the night's main event with the WWE Title on the line. The stipulation of the contest stated that if The Game got counted out or disqualified, he would lose the belt. The vicious 25-minute battle ended with Triple H hitting a Pedigree on Orton and pinning him to retain his WWE Championship.
The match didn't live up to fans' expectations, but the WWE Universe widely regards its buildup as one of the best in history. This was heel Randy Orton at his best, and it made for some intriguing TV on the road to WrestleMania 25.
Do you remember this epic storyline? What are your thoughts on Orton's demented gimmick from 2009?
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